Central Asia news

Uzbelkistan will publish its own book of records

A new project was presented in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. A special book of records to be compiled and published will offer information on Uzbeks' accomplishments, unique natural objects and phenomena, interesting facts from the economic and social life of the country and its past, and whatever else is deemed worth mentioning in connection with Uzbekistan and its citizens.

Organizers of the presentation handed out 32-page brochures (the first chapter of the future book) and explained what it all was about.

"We have accomplishments to be proud of - in athletics, culture, industry, and economy. We are convinced that they should be made public," Akadempress Director Alisher Adylbayev Alisher said. "Hence the decision to publish our own book of records. There is after all the Guinness Book of Records, Russian Book of Records... We hope to publish our own in 2008. We are working on the first chapter now. There will be 8 to 10 chapters in all. We count on cooperation from general public. We need information on all sorts of interesting things like the most beautiful waterfall or largest sycamore, even mothers with many children. We were already cabled information concerning a sycamore large enough to shelter a whole chaikhana (tea house)."

The Uzbek Book of Records will be financed by Berator Grossbukh, the bookkeeping reference service by Akadempress. Sold in the domestic market, it will also be available at travel agencies, Uzbek embassies abroad, and foreign embassies in Uzbekistan. The book will be published in three languages (Russian, Uzbek, English).

Chapter One handed out to journalists gives the general idea of what the future book will include. This chapter provides information on prominent figures of Uzbek culture like Arbor Khidoyatov, Shukur Burkhonov, Tamara Khanum, Mukhtar Ashrai, athletes Rustam Kasymjanov, Rufat Riskiyev, Arthur Grigorjan, Lina Cheryazova, Irod Tulyaganov, Oksana Chusovitina, and Ruslan Chagayev. Even Sogdiana (pop singer) made it into the Uzbek Book of Records.

Scanning the first chapter, journalists could not help noticing numerous mistakes and errors. All the same, the idea is good and the mistakes will be hopefully corrected before the publication.

Some facts from the Uzbek Book of Records:

* The highest point on the territory of Uzbekistan - Mount Khazret Sultan (4,643 meters);

* The lowest point - Minbulak Hollow (-12 meters);

* The largest desert - Kyzylkum;

* The hottest summer - in Termez (50 degrees Centigrade);

* The highest population density - in the Andijan region (551.2 people per square kilometer);

* The second largest Uzbek city (after Tashkent) - Namangan (population 4066,000);

* The best industrially developed region - Tashkent;

* The largest region - Navoi;

* The smallest region - Khorezm;

* The largest lake (discounting Aral) - Aidarkul (Arnasai Lakes);

* The only Central Asian city with subway - Tashkent;

* The largest airport in Central Asia - Tashkent;

* The largest mosque in Central Asia and one of the largest in all of the Moslem world - Bibi-Khanum (Samarkand, built 1399-1404);

* The coldest winters in Uzbekistan were recorded in 1930, 1969, 1973, and 1977.